


a flame in the breeze

by cyandlne



Category: Tales of Graces
Genre: F/F, Like, haha kill me, shoutout to when your rarepair is so rare you have to make a new tag for it, slowburn, super duper slow
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-23
Updated: 2017-08-22
Packaged: 2018-12-06 01:46:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11590443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cyandlne/pseuds/cyandlne
Summary: In an act of pure spontaneity, Cheria agrees to be Fourier's lab assistant. No one knows what to expect.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I can't believe I'm doing this. If you clicked on this purely out of curiosity, I hope you stick around and maybe leave with a new ship in your gaze! Please. I'm dying at the lack of content.  
> This takes place post-future arc. Hubert/Pascal is established but not referenced too much.

Cheria Barnes had lived her entire life on the basis of expectation.

 

She had expected that Asbel was going to leave someday, just as she had expected that he would come back. She had expected that she was destined for something greater, and eventually expected that she was going to play a part in the saving of the world. Sure, certain pieces were little surprises - like Hubert growing up to be a stern and harsh young man, or that he'd simply melt because of another one of her quirky companions, or meeting an old man who called himself Captain that would turn out to be such a valued friend. Hell, she had even expected that Asbel was going to propose to her and they'd spend the rest of their lives together, presiding over Lhant as Lord and Lady, living with their children, doing mundane, civil things every day.

 

Perhaps it was that taste of unexpected surprise that made this life she had now seem so boring. Or perhaps it was just a boring life, and she was only now realizing this. The few minutes of excitement she ever had were over, and she had a routine for every day of the rest of her life.

 

Yikes.

 

Maybe she was being greedy, but that taste of excitement was something she didn't savor, and now it was gone, and she wanted more. She wanted to live her life not knowing what was coming next, every twist and turn anxiety-inducing and scary but in a good way, not knowing what was going to happen tomorrow and not wanting to. 

 

The closest she got to that was the relief organization, and even then the only "surprise" there would be the different injuries people had obtained. She wouldn't exactly be the life of the party when she confessed that her most interesting patient was a kid with a pen stuck up his nose, or the guy who's arm was broken and you could almost see bone. Almost.

 

But it was the closest she could get to any sort of surprise, because after she finished working at the relief organization, she would have to go back to Lhant and live the rest of her life there, slaving over domestic chores until her old bony fingers couldn't prepare dinner anymore.

 

She shivered at the thought.

 

She wanted spontaneity. She craved it, ever since she had that sweet of nibble of it when she met her friends and went to save the world. 

 

And, almost as if on cue, the queen of spontaneity herself was approaching Cheria's relief organization at a somewhat alarming speed. 

 

"Cheriaaaaaaaaaa~" Pascal yelled, grabbing Cheria and pulling her into a tighter hug than she had ever known. 

 

"Hi, Pascal! How are you?" Cheria pulled away, still keeping her hands on Pascal's shoulders.

 

"I'm great! And you?" Pascal kissed her on one cheek, then the other. While Cheria was initially opposed to this, she soon learned that it was a traditional Amarcian greeting, so she let it slide.

 

"I'm - " Cheria paused. The words "I'm good" wanted to spill out of her as they always did, but this was Pascal. Her best friend. She shouldn't lie. "I'm alright."

 

"Only alright?" Pascal furrowed her brow.

 

"Yeah. Hey, I'm kinda busy right now, but we break for lunch in about five minutes, should we talk then?"

 

"Y'okay!"

 

Pascal proceeded to go greet all the people she had made herself acquainted with while visiting Cheria here, and saved another extra special greeting for Raymond. He wasn't exactly thrilled to see her, but Cheria could tell he had certainly warmed up to her since they first met. She finished up the last patient she was working on, then grabbed Pascal for lunch. They sat in a grassy spot near the tents.

 

"Hungry?" Cheria held out a half of her sandwich for Pascal, to which she not-so politely declined.

 

"Eat. You earned it." Pascal waved a hand, pretending to swat away the sandwich. Cheria giggled and proceeded to take a bite.

 

"You sure you're not hungry?"

 

"Nah." Pascal looked toward the sky. "There was this big brunch thing in Zahvert today held in my honor - "

 

"What?!" Cheria had food in her mouth, but it didn't matter.

 

"Yeah. Celebrating my achievements in the FEDS, or Fire Eleth Distribution System. I didn't even really wanna go, because I was kinda busy with a Strahta thing, but Hu booked me the soonest ship and sent me on my way. Anyway, I ate too much and decided to walk it off."

 

Cheria decided to save the question of her walking to the Lhant-Fendel border from Zahvert in favor of a more relationship centric question. "He didn't come with you?" She frowned.

 

"Nope!" Pascal smiled. "Too busy. It was hard for either of us to tear away from the project, but he wouldn't let me miss a brunch in my honor."

 

"Are you guys spending a lot of time together?" Cheria asked, a hint of worry in her voice.

 

"Not," Pascal started, but paused. "Not in the sense that people who are dating usually do, I guess. I mean, we work together every day, but not as boyfriend and girlfriend, y'know?" 

 

Cheria looked upset, then smiled. "That only makes the secret lets-sneak-off-and-makeout moments more fun, huh?"

 

"Shut up!" Pascal giggled nervously, shoving Cheria back. Her face was flushed, something uncommon for her. Cheria knew she won. "Do you know how much his dad would kill both of us if he or anyone else found out about this?"

 

"Hmm," Cheria's gaze shifted upward. "I guess it's pretty hard, huh? A scandalous romance between Strahta's Chief Science Officer and their most esteemed lieutenant. All that sneaking around."

 

"Ugh. It's the worst." Pascal groaned and rolled her eyes. "We have to pretend everything's," She used air quotes. "'Strictly professional', even though we were friends before this whole ordeal. I mean, I know I should be grateful to be appointed Chief Science Officer of a country that isn't even mine, but it kinda complicates things between me and him." Cheria sighed, and Pascal gave her a weak smile. "Uh oh, the hopeless romantic's signature sigh. What's up?"

 

"I don't know," Cheria traced a circle in the grass around her. "Even though you say you don't like it, there has to be something fun about all that undercover romance, right?"

 

"What do you mean?"

 

"It sounds like something out of a storybook!" Cheria exclaimed excitedly. "Two star-crossed lovers, flying under the radar to avoid political persecution, for if their secret got out - "

 

"Alright, alright, I get it. I guess it is kinda exciting, especially when Hu feels risky and sneaks me behind something to steal a kiss~"

 

Cheria pursed her lips. It was a little weird, to hear tales of Hubert being so suave, so romantic - she flashed back to a seven year old Asbel and six year old Hubert who refused to play with her because they were all too convinced she had cooties.

 

"In comparison, my situation's so boring," Cheria sighed. "I'm almost dreading going home to Asbel."

 

"In what way?" Pascal cocked her head.

 

"I don't know." Cheria took a breath. "When I go back, I'm basically beginning the rest of my life."

 

"What do you mean? Isn't this all you've ever wanted?"

 

"Well, it was. But it's boring. That was the dream of a girl who didn't think she'd live to see 15. This life will have no more surprises, no more excitement, no more planets in outer space that need to be saved because some thousand year old lady had given up hope long ago, or a thousand year old whatever-the-heck-Lambda-is had wrecked it by accident." She laughed nervously, but Pascal had her eyes closed. "You know?"

 

They sat in silence for a good, awkward 15 seconds before Pascal pounded a fist into an open palm. 

 

"Oh, I know!"

 

"Uh, Pascal, usually when someone says 'you know' you don't answer with - "

 

"Ohmigosh! That's so perfect!"

 

"...What?"

 

Pascal leaned into Cheria, causing her to lean back. "You want excitement? I got some excitement for ya!"

 

"Pascal, when I said I wanted excitement, I wasn't really - "

 

"Fourier needs a new assistant for her lab! Someone who's smart, agile, and preferably knows what to do in an emergency!" Pascal's grin was a wide one now, one Cheria knew well, from when she'd get an idea she knew was right. "It'd be so perfect! You'd be working with new people, a change of scenery, tons of twists of turns! Science is weird like that."

 

"Are you sure?" Cheria felt her heart beat faster. Sure, it seemed fun to be in an entirely new place, but the thought was scary. "I'm not the most sciency person, Pascal."

 

"You wouldn't have to really know stuff. You'd just help out in case there was an injury! And with bringing her lab materials, stuff like that."

 

"I'm not sure how I'd feel - " Cheria stopped herself from saying 'working with Fourier'.

 

She hadn't really thought about Fourier since she had lashed out at Pascal. Even after she had come to rescue them and get to Fodra unharmed, she still always had a bad taste in her mouth about the woman she had met. She was cold, analytical, harsh, emotionally detached - Cheria's antithesis. 

 

"Cheria, come on!" Pascal threw herself backwards into the grass in frustration. "One minute say you're bored and miserable, then I finally give you an impulse decision, and all you wanna do is think critically!"

 

Cheria couldn't help but giggle. "Well, I mean - "

 

"No meaning anything! Just - decide, right? Every moment you sit here thinking, you get older and closer to being dirt in the ground!"

 

"Pascal...it's not the sort of decision I want to make without giving it some thought. I'm not even sure what I want. I'll get back to you tomorrow, ok? Promise."

 

Pascal sat back up, and didn't have to speak. Her pinky finger was extended - Cheria took it in her own.

 

"Alright, maybe I gotta go back to the dumb banquet thingie. Have fun being boring and saving lives or whatever."

 

"I'll miss you too, Pascal." Cheria pulled her into a hug before Pascal stood up. Cheria watched her walk away, approaching the horizon line until she was out of sight. She began to pluck the grass blades out one by one. Work with Fourier? That bully of a sister? No way. She was just...too mean. Cheria would never let herself get close to someone who treated Pascal that way. And science? No, no, no. Cheria wasn't about science. She thought with her heart, not her brain. She didn't know the first thing about formulas or chemicals or anything! Why would Pascal even offer - 

 

Pascal usually did have pretty good insight to these sorts of things.

 

And Cheria was sitting here, pondering, making every excuse she could not to take this risk - just like Pascal said she would.

 

She had better hurry up and chase after her.

 

"Pascal! Pascal!"

 

Cheria jogged at a pace she hadn't in a while, and found Pascal near the Fendel border.

 

"Hey, Cheria! Did I leave something behind?"

 

"No, well, sort of - not important." Cheria was huffing her breath continually. "I want to work with Fourier."

 

"You do?"

 

"Yeah. I -" Wheeze. "I need to do something. I'm so tired of everything being so mundane. Can you let her know? When do I start?"

 

Pascal clapped her hands together in delight. "Yes!" She began rocking on her heels, a surefire indicator that she was excited. "I'll let her know as soon as I can. And I'll talk to you when you should be ready by, what to expect, that sort of thing. I'm so excited for you! I think you're gonna have fun!"

 

"You...you think?"

 

"Hey, even if you don't, it'll make for a great story."

 

Cheria frowned. 

 

"Kidding. Well, I'll see ya!"

 

"Bye, Pascal."

 

Cheria watched as Pascal walked off again, this time a little bit more content with herself. She had made a decision on the fly! A big one! One that was going to impact her life for...a very long time...along with the others she had so carelessly forgotten when being so selfish....

 

Oh boy.

 

~

 

Cheria couldn't help but feel bad about her decision, even though it had been a few days since. She had told Raymond in confidence that she would be leaving the relief organization temporarily, and he was to be in charge.

 

"But my angel!" He had poetically recited, dramatic as ever. "How could I ever have the drive to work without you here to guide and inspire me?!"

 

"Raymond..." She sighed. "I've been guiding and inspiring you long enough. You seriously don't think you can run this operation by itself?"

 

"It is not a question of my abilities, Miss Cheria - "

 

"Oh, so you don't want to help me out?" Cheria held a poker face, but smiled on the inside. Being with Hubert taught her to deal with Raymond easily. She was well on her way to becoming a true manipulator! Of one person.

 

"No! I would sacrifice anything for you - "

 

"Great! I just knew you'd be there for me, Raymond."

 

"O-Of course, Miss Cheria."

 

Cheria mentally checked off one item on her list-of-responsibilities-she-had-to-deal-with, and then decided who she would approach next. 

 

Standing on the steps to the Lhant manor had never been so terrifying.

 

"Yes, how can we - Lady Cheria!" One of the maids answered politely. "Lord Asbel and Lady Sophie are in the study."

 

"T-Thank you..." The maid smiled slyly, and Cheria felt a twinge of regret. 

 

Cheria was hesitant to knock on the study door, but she had to. 

 

"Come in!" Asbel called out, completely oblivious. Cheria could tell they were in the kiddle of an intense conversation before she so rudely interrupted.

 

"Cheria!" Sophie called out in excitement and immediately ran to hug her mother. Cheria reciprocated the hug warmly. "Hi, Sophie."

 

"Cheria, you're back! I thought you weren't coming home for a few more months - "

 

"I'm not coming home. For a while."

 

"Oh."

 

The two of them looked to the floor.

 

"That's actually why I'm here." Cheria sat in one of the chairs and pulled at the loose ribbons on her blouse. "Um, I think it'll be a little longer than we expected."

 

Asbel frowned. "More patients to treat?"

 

"No, not really...Fourier actually needed a nurse lab assistant. Pascal came to me begging to do it - " The words tasted foul in Cheria's mouth, but telling the truth might just hurt them more. " - and they seemed desperate. So I agreed. I don't know how long I'll be there."

 

Asbel and Sophie exchanged glances slowly, not sure what to think. Finally, Asbel smiled. "It's ok, Cheria. You shouldn't have to put your life on hold for us. Take as much time as you need."

 

"Thank you, Asbel..." Cheria stood and went to go give him a hug. His body was warm, and what he had just said had been so understanding and kind, so...why did these arms not feel like home? Why was this hug so forced and stale, why was this not what Cheria wanted?

 

"We'll be waiting, ok? And don't forget to write." Asbel pulled away from her, leaving his hands on her shoulders. 

 

"I won't. I promise."

 

"Good." Asbel gave her a quick pat on the head, and she turned out the door. Sophie called out a goodbye, and Cheria choked back tears. This was so ridiculously, unbelievably selfish of her, but she still wasn't stopping! Why? What drove her to continue? She ran out of the manor and the floodgates opened. She kept running until she was far away enough, on a little bridge in the town, before she sat and cried. What was wrong with her? All she had ever wanted was to live a domestic life with Asbel, why now did it seem so unappetizing and trite? She managed to walk herself back to her home, the doorknob old and barely functional. A letter was waiting on her desk, new and smelling of potassium. She opened it, heart still heavy.

_"Cheria,_

_Fourier's thrilled that you're coming to help her! She said be ready to move in by Saturday - you can stay in a nearby inn in Zahvert, no charge. She's boarded you up there for 2 months, so pack a bunch of stuff! You'll be mostly doing mundane lab stuff, but sometimes you'll get to do some cooler science stuff! Also you're a standby nurse in case anything goes berserk! Anyway, I'll be there with ya the first day. Love ya!_

_-Pascal <3_

 

Cheria sighed. She wasn't expecting anymore than basically a secretary, but life goes on. The beginning caught her a little off guard, though. Fourier was really thrilled to have her? Cheria couldn't imagine Fourier being thrilled about anything ever. Today was Thursday, so that gave her a day to pack. She decided to start now, just in case she needed to rethink anything. Bathing suit? In Fendel? But what if...

 

Cheria was a notorious over packer, and by the end of it her suitcase barely managed to zipper shut. One might think she was going away for two years rather than two months, but it never hurt to be prepared. She glanced at the pressed sopheria bookmark on her desk. She took it every where - almost acting as a good luck charm. She reached for it, then stopped. She would be working in a lab for the next two months, which included dangerous chemicals and dangerous explosions and dangerous...danger. If she lost that charm, she might lose the memories that came with it. Those thoughts were enough to convince her not to. She debated whether or not to give it to Sophie and Asbel as a promise to return safe and sound, but the promise should remain in her words. She decided to leave it there. She glanced out her window - how was it so dark already? She brewed some tea and settled into bed for the night.

 

Friday was a day Cheria took for herself. She got up late, packed a picnic and went to Lhant Hill by herself. The flowers were as beautiful as ever, and it gave her time to think a little bit. Maybe this whole decision was a little selfish, but who's to say that the people in the lab don't need their lives saved? If Asbel and Sophie couldn't wait a little longer, then they didn't deserve her at all.

 

Well, Sophie deserved her. She was a child, she didn't know any better. 

 

Either way, Cheria's life was about Cheria. No one else. Just Cheria. 

 

And Fourier, suddenly.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cheria sees just exactly what she's getting into.

Saturday came quickly and Cheria, after saying a quick goodbye to her grandfather, was off in a Turtlez Transport to Zahvert. The cost was shouldered by Fendel through Fourier, so Cheria tipped the driver handsomely. She figured generating some good karma wouldn't exactly be a bad thing. Zahvert was...just as cold as she remembered it, but not as dreary. It wasn't snowing (for once) and she was able to make it to the inn with relative ease. 

 

"Hello, my name is Cheria Barnes? I was told someone had rented a room for me for a little while - " Cheria suddenly remembered how much she tipped the Turtlez driver and wondered if whatever was left over would be enough to at least keep her for one night, in the event that Fourier decided not to pay for her lodging. Luckily, she didn't have to worry, because the desk manager found her reservation quickly.

 

"Ah! Here you are Miss Barnes," The woman handed her a key. The furthest room down on the left - the master suite. "Let us know if we can do anything for you - and enjoy your stay!"

 

Cheria blinked a few times at the idea of a master suite, then figured it wasn't some sort of crazy mix up. She'd have to talk about it with Pascal when she gets here. She thanked the woman behind the desk, and headed up the steps to her suite. Her home for the next two months. She opened the door to, well, a master suite. It was large for a hotel room, and had a large attached bathroom as well. She plopped herself onto the mattress in a fit of physical and emotional exhaustion. Everything about this felt wrong but also right. It was so similar to her previous adventures. A part of her was nervous she'd get hooked on it again. 

 

She wasn't sure how much time had passed when a sudden knock on her door made Cheria'a posture upright and correct once again. "Come in!" She called meekly, a little exhausted from her journey and not quite ready to do whatever it was she signed up for.

 

"Heyo!" Pascal came in slowly, closing the door softly behind her. "Excited for your first day?" 

 

The genuine giddiness on Pascal's face made it easier to fake enthusiasm. "Of course," Cheria replied. "It's gonna be fun. I know it."

 

"Of course it is! My best friend and my best sister working together, like a couple of pals!"

 

"Your only sister, Pascal."

 

"Details, details." Pascal said with a lackadaisical shrug of her shoulders. "Anyway, we should head out soon. I gotta get back to Strahta."

 

"For your boyfriend~?" Cheria asked in that teasy singsong voice. 

 

"Geez, Cheria. Sometimes a girl has to advance her own life, free from the grip of a man!" Pascal rolled her eyes and huffed her breath. "But Hu will be waiting for me at the dock, so I'd better hurry before the president gets on my butt for having two of his most productive citizens on long, long break."

 

Cheria giggled, then stood slowly. Pascal grabbed her hand and happily lead her out of the room, then the hotel, then Zahvert. The cold and wind were biting as usual, though Cheria couldn't help but feel it got worse every time she came here. The snow fell at a fast pace, and the icy breeze hit her quickly. The journey to Fourier's lab was a long and cold one. So very cold.

 

"...Fourier's not out here to greet us?" Cheria asked under her breath, which she could see. Pascal heard her, despite Cheria's best efforts, but didn't seem offended.

 

"I told her to wait inside. It's too cold! She'll get sick." 

 

They continued their walk in silence, and Cheria had a moment to ponder for herself. Despite not taking the best care of herself, Pascal definitely noticed how things could affect others and always put their wants above her needs. 

 

"Fourier~!" Pascal ran to greet her sister with a hug, who almost dropped her clipboard. She was wearing a white lab coat on top of her usual garb. "How's my favorite sister?"

 

"Your  _only_  sister is doing well. And yourself?"

 

"Good. Busy, but good, I guess." Pascal smiled at her sister. "Oh! Cheria's here!"

 

"I should hope so," Fourier's expression remained unchanged. "She was supposed to arrive today, after all." 

 

Cheria laughed nervously, then waved once Pascal moved and put her in Fourier's line of vision. "Hello, Fourier. It's nice to see you again."

 

"Likewise." 

 

Cheria’s pride was a little wounded when Fourier immediately went back to talking to her sister, but she couldn’t say that wasn’t her expectation. Their banter ranged from playful to serious to scolding, and Cheria couldn’t help but smile at the interactions. She had always wanted a sibling - any sibling - but a sister was the preference of the two. 

 

“And your husband?” Fourier asked, her words teasing but her tone seemingly serious. 

 

“F-Fourier, come on…he’s just my boyfriend…” Pascal’s face flushed again, a rare treat.

 

“I’m waiting for my nieces and nephews!” Fourier wagged a finger at her.

 

“Like you’re one to talk…” Pascal’s volume got lower. Cheria could no longer eavesdrop. Fourier’s face flushed slightly, but she pretended to still have the upper hand in the conversation. “I better get going, anyway…Oh, speak of the devil.” Pascal’s communicator beeped in her pocket. She took it upon herself to read the message aloud, presumably because her audience was nosy. “'Where are you? You promised you wouldn’t be too long. The President is likely getting worried about both of us. Love you. - Hubert.’ Gosh, he worries. I gotta run. Bye, you two!”

 

“Bye,” They said in unison. The seconds that followed were awkward and strange as neither of them felt that they had much to say, but something needed to be said. Suddenly a man came barreling into the room, his coat partially burned. 

 

“Miss Fourier! The eleth experiment was…it’s…please, come quickly!"

 

“Understood.” Fourier’s lab coat flourished behind her as she ran alongside the man. Cheria assumed the burns might have gone under the coat and onto the man’s skin, and followed behind quickly. They reached a room at the end of the hall. Inside were a few men and women standing around a broken glass container. They all looked concerned and some of them looked injured. 

 

“Is it safe for me to go over there?” Cheria asked, her voice lower than usual. Normally she wouldn’t have hesitated, but she wasn’t typically in a lab setting and certain areas might be dangerous without the proper equipment. Fourier nodded, her brow furrowed. Cheria ran to the people and immediately began using her healing artes. “Where does it hurt?” She asked a man lying on the ground. 

 

“Here…” He gestured to his shoulder with his other arm, where the coat was charred a deep black. Cheria removed the lab coat and discovered a slight redness on his shoulder.

 

“It’s a first degree burn. There are no lacerations or anything. Are you injured anywhere else?”

 

“No…not that I know of…” 

 

“Does anyone have broken glass in them or were cut by it?” Cheria called out without moving her hands. Silently, the other employees shook their heads. It seemed all that happened was a few burns. If Cheria wasn’t so focused on her task, she might have noticed how Fourier wasn’t so curious to see what exactly had happened.

 

The man Cheria was healing suddenly breathed a sigh of relief. “My pain…it’s gone!” 

 

“Good.” Cheria moved from person to person, healing them until they stopped crying out in pain. 

 

“You were all very lucky…” She stated to them. “This explosion looked pretty violent, but no one here even bled.” They each thanked her individually. Cheria was numb to the gratitude at this point. It was just the sort of thing that came with the job. She glanced to Fourier, who was jotting something down on the clipboard she had earlier.

 

“Excellent! 14 minutes and 24.57 seconds. Very well done for your first drill, Cheria.” Fourier displayed a stopwatch and continued to write notes. 

 

“…Excuse me?” Cheria’s jaw dropped and her fists clenched. 

 

“I said you did well for your drill. Your skills will prove valuable to me in the unlikely event of an accident, similar to this simulation.”

 

“You don’t…you don’t trust that I could handle this?” Cheria asked again. The other lab junkies silently left.

 

“Didn’t. This drill certainly proved otherwise. Pascal sang your praises of course, but I wouldn’t believe it until I saw it.” Fourier smiled sweetly. Cheria seethed with rage.

 

“You really staged an emergency just to test my skills?!” Cheria demanded an answer. 

 

“Well, it wasn’t hard, if that’s what you’re asking. I used some old coats we had, and an old containment unit that had exploded long before today.”

 

“So that’s why there wasn’t any broken glass - so, wait, the burns? They were fake?"

 

“No. I had my employees burn themselves very slightly through the coats, just to make sure your healing abilities actually worked.”

 

“You had your own employees burn themselves and made me waste my time thinking this was actually an emergency just so you could measure my abilities?! Because you didn’t trust the word of your own sister or even me?!”

 

“Yes…? Why do you sound so upset -“

 

“I can’t believe that! That is absolutely and entirely unacceptable! In what world can you hurt your working peers to earn the trust of your sister’s best friend?!” Cheria felt like she could burst with anger and sadness. Quickly, she made a beeline for the door, tears welling up in her eyes. She felt so - so used, so hurt, so manipulated. Of course she had a bad feeling about this, because it was going to turn out bad from the start. She wanted to leave, get out of this place, but it was too cold outside, so she just ran all through the halls and floors of the building until she could find a closet. She sat in there and cried. It felt like a sob in which one hasn't cried in a while, but that wasn't true. Cheria just had a good cry recently, so this one just felt sloppy and painful and tight and stressful. She wanted to stop crying, but every time she thought about what just happened, more tears came. 

 

She didn't have to stay here and take this. She could go home and do a job in which people actually needed help and respected her and trusted her -

 

Pascal would be so disappointed. And she'd have to deal with Raymond again. And Asbel. 

 

She'd never felt so trapped in all her life. A sudden exhaustion hit her, and she lied on the cold floor and managed to sleep, though it was a light and short nap. The sudden noise of footsteps clanking on the metal floors outside woke her.

 

"Cheria? Miss Cheria?" Fourier's voice called. Cheria debated whether or not to say anything, and before she could even come to a decision, Fourier knocked on the closet door. 

 

"Come in -" Cheria said instinctively, and kicked herself for it. Fourier came into the room and sat on the floor next to Cheria.

 

"I came to apologize." Cheria realized suddenly that the fact that she knocked on the door would indicate she's been knocking on every door, looking for her. "I can see how what I did could come off as disrespectful to you, my sister, and even my employees. I'm sorry."

 

"Are you really?" Cheria asked, looking at the floor. "Or are you just trying to diffuse the tension between us so we can get back to business more quickly?"

 

"...A little bit of both." Fourier said, tracing a circle around a bolt in the floor. 

 

"Unbelievable." Cheria said in a sigh.

 

"Look, Cheria, the fact of the matter is that I don't entirely understand what was wrong with what I did. I do, in part, understand that it wasn't perfect, but another part of me believes aspects of it are without flaw." Fourier turned to her. "We grew up in entirely different environments, with different societal rules and expectations. It's just how it is. And there may be a few bumps in the road because of that. But I'm here, right? I'm trying to understand what made you upset, and I'm going to try not to do it again. The key word is try. I need your cooperation to make it work."

 

Cheria turned back to Fourier, and was shocked to see her with a genuine look of concern on her face. "I guess...you're right."

 

"So, tell me what upset you specifically."

 

"Well, first of all, asking your employees to hurt themselves is a big no no. Always." Fourier nodded, and Cheria continued. "And asking me to heal an injury that was entirely preventable is a waste of my time and energy, which is unfair to me." Fourier's brow furrowed, and Cheria had spent enough time disciplining children to see the genuine remorse on her face. "I think a drill itself was a little unfair, but I at least understand where you're coming from. But you should have trusted Pascal, and you should have had trust in me."

 

Fourier's eyes closed and she seemed to be pondering that last statement. As much as Cheria thought she was right and hated to admit it, she also wanted this tension to be gone. She wondered if she would be willing to forgive certain things even if it meant sacrificing her morals for a time of less stress. 

 

"I don't know you." Fourier finally spoke. 

 

"...What do you mean?"

 

"It's very important to me to make my own judgements of character based off of my own experience. Despite me asking them to burn themselves a few minutes ago, I truly do care for my employees and only want the best for them. I needed to be one hundred percent certain that you should be here. And I'm not trying to make excuses, I'm trying to explain myself. But I don't know you."

 

"..."

 

"..."

 

"Would you like to?"

 

"Huh?"

 

Cheria smiled. "Would you like to know me? As a person? Not just a glorified nurse?"

 

Fourier's lips were parted slightly, and for once in a blue moon, she smiled. "I would be delighted to."

 

The two of them made their way back to the original lab in which they had met. Their conversations speckled with small, less than interesting facts about each other. Fourier's favorite color was blue, and Cheria's favorite food was grilled chicken, and Fourier preferred cats to dogs, and Cheria's favorite pastime is cooking. It felt rude to her, but Cheria was honestly shocked that Fourier was kind of a person underneath all that cold, hard science. She had favorites and likes and dislikes and maybe even feelings!

 

Ok. Maybe not feelings. You never know.

 

But Cheria had seen Fourier express more emotion than she ever had before. Smiling, frowning, it was a lot to take in. The thing they bonded over the most, of course, was Pascal. 

 

"She never bathed with us, of course. One time I actually had to beat her in battle!" Cheria ended her statement with a laugh, half out of nerves and half because she thought it was so absurd it was laughable.

 

"Oh, I've had to do that. She's a tough nut to crack, I suppose." Fourier rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips. "The real question is will she ever change?"

 

"I would bet not. And why does she only ever eat bananas? Does she know about food groups?"

 

"I know, I know. I used to pretend to make food with bananas in it when she was little so she would eat it." Fourier started to count on her fingers. "Banana casserole, banana soup, banana meatloaf...none of them, of course had any actual bananas, though."

 

"Aw! That's cute." Cheria smiled at the thought of Pascal as a child. Her picky eating, refusal to bathe and general whining might have been more tolerable if she were cute and much younger. "I wonder what she'd say if she heard us gossiping about her!"

 

"She wouldn't care. Probably spill a few of my secrets, though."

 

"Oh~? Like what, for example?" Cheria raised her eyebrows. She knew from experience, girls share secrets and that's how they bond. Wait, what girl friend has she had besides Pascal? She immediately knew she crossed a line when Fourier's total expression dropped. She said nothing to dispel the awkwardness. "Oh, right. Sorry."

 

"I accept your apology." Fourier said coldly. "Anyway, I really should be getting back to work - you can head back to the inn if you'd like. We'll get you if there's an emergency."

 

"Right. Thanks." Fourier walked away quickly, and Cheria was left wondering why she couldn't just let things work themselves out. Everything on this excursion so far has come so close to being perfect, and so far, nothing has come full circle at all.

 

Cheria made her way back to the inn in a pouty stomp through the snow. She decided to write a quick letter to Asbel and Sophie to calm herself a little, and then decided to go to bed. She wouldn't be able to fall asleep for some time anyway, so she might as well try while the sun is still up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a flame in the breeze: aka fourier is a bitch except for when she isn't


End file.
